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Chicago's rathole: One year later, the quirky icon still makes an impact

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Published  January 8, 2025 4:42pm CST
Chicago
FOX 32 Chicago

The Chicago rathole: One year later

It has been exactly one year since the Chicago rathole became burned into the citys collective consciousness.

The Brief

    • It’s been a year since the Chicago rathole—a quirky, rat-shaped indentation in a Northside sidewalk—captured the city’s heart and went viral.
    • Now preserved under glass at City Hall, the rathole sparked a social media phenomenon, drew thousands of visitors, and even inspired a wedding.
    • Artist Winslow Dumaine, whose post made it famous, now sells plaster casts of the rathole to benefit a local women’s shelter.

CHICAGO - It has been exactly one year since the Chicago rathole became burned into the city's collective consciousness.

The rat-shaped indentation in a Northside sidewalk had been part of the 1900 block of West Roscoe for decades but went viral on social media thanks to a local artist and comedian.

So, where is the rathole now?

Chicago streets and sanitation commissioner Cole Stallard walked FOX 32's Dane Placko into a conference room in his 11th-floor City Hall office.

"Here it is. They even put a nice case on it," said Stallard, gesturing to a giant square of concrete inside a wooden frame. "The people who wonder where it's at, it's in good hands. It's under glass here. And we're taking care of it."

The city of Chicago decided to remove the rathole after it became a major inadvertent tourist attraction. Roscoe Village residents complained about the crowds and noise, as the rathole drew thousands of visitors who left coins, flowers, and trinkets. It was even the site of a rathole wedding.

The rathole even has its own Wikipedia page, which includes entries like the history of the rathole, debate over its origins, similar phenomena, and a gallery of pictures.

"Of all the things I've done with my life, that's how I ended up in Wikipedia," said Chicago artist and comedian Winslow Dumaine, who sparked the rathole phenomenon a year ago when he posted a picture of the curious indentation on Twitter. Within days, the post had millions of views.

On Wednesday, the one-year anniversary of our first rathole story, FOX 32 met Dumaine at the former rathole site, now replaced by new slabs of concrete.

"The news cycle was extremely depressing at that time. As it generally is these days. And having some sort of silly, unique thing that is extremely Chicago kind of brought a lot of people together. And I think it still does."

Dumaine now sells plaster casts of the rathole. All the proceeds go to Sarah's Circle, a Northside shelter for homeless women.

As for the future of the rathole, Stallard believes the bizarre cultural icon needs to meet its public.

"We've had a lot of fun with it. We'd like to be able to showcase it so more people can enjoy it," said Stallard. "We're looking. We want it to end up in the right place. We want it to end up in the right hands, not in my office."

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